266 
[ Assembly 
tha separation of the saline waters which it covers, from the- waters, of 
the lake, to which it forms the bottom of the basin. 
In order to ascertain the depth of the lake, the kind of water which 
exists at the bottom of the lake, and the nature of the bottom, Dr« 
Beck and myself made an excursion thereon. We found that the 
greatest depth was opposite to Liverpool, about midway between the 
west shore and that place; it was 65 feet. The water obtained from 
that depth was just, as fresh or pure as at the surface. We found that 
the water gradually deepened from both sides of the lake, less gradu- 
ally, however, on the western shore than the east shore. To about 
fifteen feet from either shore w^e found the marl was white, but be- 
yond it w^as of an ash colour, and also blackish blue, the lead sinking 
into it for many inches. Where the waters from Nine Mile creek en- 
ter the lake, as we supposed, the water deepened from 10 feet on both 
sides to 25 and 28 feet in the inlet. 
The boring which was commenced in the summer at Salina, by au- 
thority of the Lagislature, in the hope of obtaining rock salt, or a 
stronger brine than any yet discovered, is near its completion. It gives 
negative knowledge as to the object for which it was undertaken, but 
some valuable facts for the history of the salines of Onondaga. The 
facts are confirmatory of all that we have advanced. It was evident 
that rock salt could not be obtained where the boring was commenced, 
because it w^as at least 100 feet below the porous rocks and the position 
of the hopper cavities, the only position where salt, from observation, 
could be expected to exist. With respect to salt water, it was too near 
the line of the shore of the ancient excavation, to calculate that any 
great depth of alluvial could be obtained, and without which no greater 
strength of brine could be expected, unless the red shale deposit was in 
connection with the deepest alluvial, which the deep boring at Liver- 
pool negatives. 
At my last visit to Salina, the boring had attained 85 feet, 62 of 
which in small gravel with earth, large gravel with fragments of 2 or 3 
inches diameter, more or less water worn, consisting of granite, hard 
gneiss, red and gray sandstone, black limestone and a piece or two of 
the porous rock The last 8 feet was what is called hard-pan, being 
clay and stones cemented, under which 
at 62 feet; red shale yielding at 
72 " small veins of salt w^atev from a porous rock. 
76 " bluish shale, forming a tenacious clay, in which the boring 
continued to 
85 " when I left Salina, Since then I have received eleven spe- 
